Championing Pedagogical Innovators: Supporting and Empowering Informal Leaders in Higher Education Teaching & Learning Spaces
​This Dissertation in Practice (DiP) examines the underrecognized role of informal pedagogical leaders—particularly contract, pretenure, and teaching-stream faculty—at a large Canadian research-intensive university (pseudonym: Scholar University). Although these educators are central to undergraduate teaching and student success, they often face systemic precarity, invisibility, and exclusion from formal leadership structures. Drawing on more than two decades of practitioner experience in the higher education sector, and grounded in relational, servant, and authentic leadership theories, in this dissertation I propose a values-driven, equity-informed framework for institutional change (from the bottom-up). The central problem of practice addressed is the lack of institutional structures that support or sustain grassroots pedagogical innovation led by teaching-focused faculty. In response, this DiP proposes a 2-year implementation plan centred around three core strategies: the establishment of interdisciplinary communities of practice to foster collaboration and reduce isolation; the recognition and support of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning as a form of collective, informal leadership; and the expansion of accessible, peer-led professional development tailored to the needs of precarious academic workers. The change plan includes a communication strategy, evaluation framework, and knowledge mobilization approach to ensure long-term sustainability and institutional impact. By reimagining leadership from the bottom up, this project offers a practical pathway to a more inclusive and responsive academic culture.
higher education, informal leadership, pedagogical innovation, systemic precarity, teaching-focused faculty, equity-informed change, grassroots
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